Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Fall 2018
Description
Introduction: The purpose of this study was to identify mentoring practices of new faculty members in Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC) accredited respiratory care programs in the U.S. and to identify the perceptions of program directors regarding the observed impact of program mentoring practices. Methods: The method for the study was quantitative non-experimental survey research. The survey instrument was an electronic questionnaire titled Respiratory Care Faculty (RCF) Mentoring Survey. The 25-item survey was divided into three dimensions: mentoring practices, mentor/mentee relationship, and perceptions of the impact of new faculty mentoring. Of the 410 possible program director participants, 126 (30%) responded to the survey. Data from the survey were used to analyze three primary research questions on four independent variables (12 total research questions). Results: Testing of the null hypotheses associated with the 12 research questions resulted in three significant findings and 9 findings that were not significant. Significant findings included female program directors reported greater opportunities for mentoring within their programs and greater levels of expectation concerning mentoring as compared to male program directors. Program directors from associate degree programs also reported a higher level of expectation concerning mentoring than program directors in bachelor’s degree programs. There was overwhelming agreement regarding the potential impact and benefit of mentoring new faculty to improve job performance, reduce turnover, improve job satisfaction, and organizational commitment. Conclusion: The results of this study may benefit administrators and educators in respiratory care in efforts to support new faculty who possibly feel underprepared or overwhelmed in the new role. Because other allied health fields of study are similar in nature to respiratory care, the findings of the study could have potential implications across a range of health-related professions.
Citation Information
McHenry, Kristen L.; Lampley, Jim; Byington, Randy L.; Good, Donald W.; and Tweed, Stephanie R.. 2018. New Faculty Mentoring in Respiratory Care Programs. Respiratory Care Education Annual. Vol.27 22-32. https://www.aarc.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/rcea2018.pdf ISSN: 2372-0735
Copyright Statement
Copyright © 2018 by the American Association for Respiratory Care. This document was published with permission by the American Association for Respiratory Care. It was originally published by Respiratory Care Education Annual.